by Connie Oswald Stofko Fences are usually used to keep things in, like pets, or to keep things out, like rabbits and deer. But fences can also make your landscape more welcoming. Here are two examples from the large Orchard Park landscape of Pat Gurney, who I visited last year during Open Gardens. (See her tips on using annuals and perennials here.) The photo at the beginning of this article shows a long fence between a sunny area and a…
by Connie Oswald Stofko Pansies are in bloom now and can add color to your garden, porch or patio. While cold temperatures won’t kill pansies, temperatures in the 20s Fahrenheit can damage the blooms, said Jessica Limardi, who is on the staff at Mischler’s Florist and Greenhouses, 118 South Forest Rd., Williamsville. Nightime temperatures may get that low in the coming week. “Without a good thick blanket of snow, the flowers can get damaged, so pull them close to the…
Graycliff is recruiting volunteers for its Green Team to help maintain the historic gardens and grounds. No experience is necessary. Graycliff will provide you with the tools and training to feel comfortable in the gardens. You will work with the English Gardener and Graycliff staff. You’ll learn about the historic landscape, designed by famed architect Frank Lloyd Wright and landscape architect Ellen Biddle Shipman, while having fun and helping the nonprofit further its mission. The Green Team will work on Wednesday mornings….
by Connie Oswald Stofko I know that thousands of you are wondering: who are the three winners of our prize drawing worth nearly $500? I’m still waiting to find out! Using a randomized list of subscribers, I notified the first three that they were winners. Only one got back to me by the deadline, so I moved down the list and notified two more. Only one of those two has gotten back to me. If the other person doesn’t respond…
by Connie Oswald Stofko After weeks of snow covering our gardens, we can see plants again here in Western New York! The sun has been shining. At times, the weather’s so warm, you can be outside without a sweater. We can tackle some gardening tasks now that we couldn’t do just a couple of weeks ago. But it’s still early spring and the weather fluctuates. The afternoon warmth can be followed by freezing temperatures at night. A stretch of warm…
Christmas cactus (Schlumbergera buckleyi) is an easy-to-care-for houseplant that can flourish for years, said Lyn Chimera in this article in the most recent edition of WNY Gardening Matters. “I still have a large plant that started out as a cutting from my mother over 50 years ago,” she said. Learn more about Christmas cactuses– and Thanksgiving cactuses, too– as well as how to care for them, in the article. Also in this edition is a graphic on principles of permaculture….
by Connie Oswald Stofko Tell your friends that today, Tuesday, March 22, is the last day to enter to win a gardener’s prize package worth nearly $500. All they have to do to enter is subscribe to Buffalo-NiagaraGardening.com. And it’s free to subscribe! Welcome new subscribers! Shout out to my loyal readers from past years! If you have already subscribed, you are already in the prize drawing! But if you haven’t subscribed, do it today. You will automatically be entered into our prize drawing….
by Connie Oswald Stofko Plantasia, Western New York’s premier garden and landscape show, is back after a two-year hiatus because of the pandemic. Plantasia will be held from Thursday to Sunday, March 17 to 20, at the Fairgrounds Event Center and Artisan Hall, 5820 South Park Ave., Buffalo. Hours are 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Thursday through Saturday and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday. You can buy tickets online or at the door. Here are a couple new things…
by Connie Oswald Stofko You don’t have to know everything about gardening to enjoy a wonderful garden. “If you ask me the name of the plant, I have no idea,” said Jim Bardot, who has seven magnificent gardens in his front yard in Amherst. If you’re a gardener who doesn’t like to keep track of plant names, don’t let that hold you back. Get inspiration from what Bardot has accomplished. See an overview of his front yard here and see…
by Connie Oswald Stofko I hope you’re enjoying all the features of Buffalo-NiagaraGardening.com: ideas from other Western New York gardens, your favorite gardening topics, and the most up-to-date list of WNY gardening events. Please take a moment to tell your gardening friends about this great resource– and let them know that they have only one week left to enter our prize drawing. All they have to do is subscribe to Buffalo-NiagaraGardening.com, and it’s free to subscribe! Have you already subscribed?…